The US Air Force continues to fight against unknown flying objects over North America. In winter, Air Force planes shot down several balloons over the territory of the United States and Canada, including a Chinese balloon. He became first aerial target, destroyed by the fifth generation fighter F-22 Raptor. Recently, three of these aircraft went to intercept an unknown spherical object.

What is known

Last week, the US Air Force sent three fifth-generation F-22 fighters to intercept an object of unknown origin that was flying over Hawaii. As it turned out, it was another balloon.

The US military, along with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), continue to track the object. The US Department of Defense said it did not know the owner of the ball. However, the Pentagon does not believe that it is controlled by a hostile or foreign entity. Also, the defense department said that the ball does not pose a threat.

The US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) responded to an unidentified radar signature in the vicinity of Hawaii. The Pacific Air Force took to the skies three F-22 fighters to assess the situation and visually identified a spherical object.

The balloon hovered at an altitude of approximately 11,000 km (36,000 feet), where civil aviation aircraft can fly. It did not fly directly over critical defense infrastructure or other important US government installations. In addition, the aerial object did not pose a military or physical threat to people on the ground.

Taking into account the observational data, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (Lloyd Austin) agreed with the recommendation of the military command not to take any action against the balloon. It has already left the airspace and territorial waters of Hawaii. The FAA and the Pentagon continue to track the balloon. Now the air object is moving towards Mexico.

Source: The War Zone